It's the holidays! 'Tis the season to celebrate with families and friends. It's also the most active time for shipping- online and in store. We have been buying online for many years. Each year, we see increasing schemes conjured up by scammers. We’ve documented many of them here. We want to remind you to be diligent about these scams. The newest scams involve using your personal info against you, using purposefully misleading information or using call-to-action threats. Let's look at each one.

USING YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION AGAINST YOU
The most disturbing new scam involves a phone call and your credit card info. This comes from a report by the Blaine County Idaho Sheriff’s Department. It works like this:

You get an UNSOLICITED phone call from the MasterCard or Visa Security & Fraud Department. They identify themselves and give you their (fake) employee ID. They tell you your name, they give you your credit card number and they give you your credit card expiration date. They tell you they detected fraudulent activity on your credit card, tell you the amount and the retailer. They ask if you made this purchase. You say no, because you didn’t make the purchase.

Now, here is the scam....What they don’t have is your Card Validation Value (CVV). They ask you to verify your CVV. If you give it to them, you’re done. DO NOT GIVE YOUR CVV to a person who makes an UNSOLICITED phone call. Of course, if you are purchasing something by phone, the customer service personasks yo for the CVV. They neexd that to complete the transaxrion. The difference is you called them.

PURPOSEFULLY MISLEADNG INFORMATION SCAMS
These are the type of scams where the scammer is betting you have recently made a purchase from a big online retailer, like Amazon, Apple or Walmart. They call, send a text or email to you. Here is an example where the scammer left an automatic voice mail.

Like the voice mail above, they want you to approve the amount of purchase before the item can be shipped by calling or clicking on a link. Note, never click on the USEFUL or NOT USEFUL link (or any other link provided). Nothing good happens if you do. Think about it!

This scam goes out UNSOLICITED to however many millions of phone numbers or emails the scammer has purchased or stolen. If you already bought something and called to make the purchase or have gone through the website’s shopping cart, the retailer or credit card provider will not send you an email or text asking you to approve or verify a purchase. Delete it, immediately! Of course, the retailer or credit card provider may send an email or text verifying the purchase immediately after the purchase is made, but they won’t ask you to verify the purchase.

One exception to the above is when your credit card provider sends you a notification of potential fraud. Of course, the time your credit card provider sends you a fraud alert email or text is during or immediately after the attempted purchase with the exact amount of your purchase. In that case and assuming you just tried to make the purchase, follow the instructions provided by your credit card provider. An example; Text YES if you made this purchase or NO if you didn’t.

The Security and Fraud Department will not call you some delayed time after you attempt to make the purchase (like the first scam example above). And they will never ask you for your CVV. Hang up and call the number on your credit card if you are concerned about the fraud alert.

Call-to-Action Threats
These are the type of scams that make the same assumption; you have recently made a purchase from a big online retailer.

The difference (from the example above) is they send an UNSOLICITED invoice to confirm your purchase. Of course, the purchase is manufactured and the amount fictitious, but the amount of purchase is several hundred dollars or even thousands of dollars. You think, “I never bought that item and certainly did not pay anything near that amount!” So, your instinct is to click on the link or call the number in the email or text to correct the error. Don't! Delete it, immediately!

If you bought something online, you paid for it already. No online retail organization would send you an invoice at some later time. They may send you an email or text immediately after you make the purchase but not delayed hours or days after the purchase. If you receive such an email or text and believe it is legitimate, go to the online portal where you made the purchase, start a chat there or call the customer service number on the online portal.

What to Do?
We say it all the time. Whenever you get an UNSOLICITED call, email or text, ignore it, delete it and don't answer it; regardless of who it is from. Stop, Think and Delete! That's the best solution. Don't fall for these scams. Never call the phone number or click on any link from UNSOLICITED email or texts.

Our Advice
Enjoy the holiday season, enjoy your family and friends, and keep yourself safe from online scams.

Whatever your financial need, we're here to help.